The management of the Spratly Islands conflict: Success or failure?
The management of the Spratly Islands conflict: Success or failure? Author: Sopheada Phy Originally Published at Peace and Conflict Monitor on: 06/02/2009 Category: Analysis II The Spratly Islands are situated in the South China Sea, one of the largest continental shelves in the world, which is abundant in resources such as oil, natural gas, minerals, […]
The Lesser of Several Evils
It is obvious Iran is seeking a nuclear weapon. The question, therefore, is what to do about it, and this question must be answered now, before Israel takes matters into its own hands and sets off even more conflict in the region, or before Iran gets the bomb and sets off an arms race among its neighbors. The international community’s options aren’t pretty, but even worse would be to do nothing.
The Little Children
Then They Started Shooting breaks stereotypes about “traumatized war children” by talking about children’s resilience in dealing with war hardship. In the aftermath of the Bosnian conflict, very few children showed lasting signs of trauma; instead, thoughts of their personal futures filled their minds. In her analyses of individual psychological health, Jones points out that children who avoided searching for explanations for past events have better psychological health than those who did not. Truly, distancing oneself from the past can be protective, but it can also cost the community as a whole. In the case of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it seems that ignoring the past and lacking the will to deal with it can reopen the wounds that never properly healed.
The state of the field. An interview with Christopher Mitchell
The state of the field. An interview with Christopher Mitchell Author: Ross Ryan Originally Published at Peace and Conflict Monitor on 09/19/2008 Christopher Mitchell is currently Professor Emeritus at theInstitute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University, Virginia, where he was the Drucie French Cumbie Professor of Conflict Analysis for fifteen years. Previously, […]
Biological Determinism: Gender and Peace in the Contemporary British Context
This article explores contemporary British gender relations as premised upon biological determinism. Through an analysis of the definitions of peace and violence, the link between gender relations and peace are exposed. Gender is problematised by exploring the way that scientific knowledge constructs and reinforces dichotomies of man and woman. Through a gendered analysis of contemporary British gender relations I argue that questions of gender relations are externalised and ignored. I propose that we, my generation of young men and women, need to engage creatively with our gendered identities in order to seek a more peaceful existence.
Back in the Balkans: the 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest
Raluca Batanoiu reports on the NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania, where Eastern European states were urged to commit more troops to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Bush and Putin shook hands over the missile defence controversy, and Croatia and Albania were granted NATO membership while Georgia and Ukraine continue to wait. Ultimately, talk of security and troop deployments drowned out any mention of peace.
Consolidating independence and peace in Kosovo
Two years after Kosovo’s controversial separation from Serbia, Martin Wählisch reports on the progress of the country, the challenges it faces, and the prospects for peace and stability in the region.
Regionalism and Reconciliation: A Comparison of the French-German and Chinese-Japanese Model
Dr. Gao Lan, Director of Northeast Asian Studies Centre at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, examines the prospects for, and possible pathways to, reconciliation between China and Japan and for the creation of an East Asian Community via a comparison with Germany and France’s post-WWII reconciliation and the development of the European Union. Lan identifies cultural, economic, and historical similarities and differences between China-Japan relations and the successful Germany-France model, illuminating factors that may ultimately facilitate and/or impede reconciliation and regional integration.
The Conflict in Chechnya: Confronting the Threat of State Disintegration and the Right to Self-Determination
This article focuses on the right of the Chechen people to self determination. It examines the legitimacy of the Chechens’ claim to self determination and assesses the policy actions of the Russian government toward the minority populations of the Caucasus. It also assesses the various aspects related to the legitimacy of the movements that fight for self-determination in the context of the global war on terror as well as the problem of violations of minority group rights. The author argues that current policies of the Russian government in the Caucasus do not lay the foundation for the long-lasting peace and stability in the region and are, in large part, conducive to the continuation of separatist tendencies.
Keywords: Russia, Chechnya, self-determination, state-building, repression, human rights, identity rights
The Sorry State of British Democracy
Patricia Rich gives a first hand account of the spiritless British elections, which seem all the more bland in comparison to the vibrant 2009 democratic election in El Salvador, which Rich participated in as an international observer.